Reporting snapshot · 20 Feb 2026. The collusion allegations are attributed to Pakistan's defence minister; the bomber's identity was reported by the state-run Associated Press of Pakistan.
What happened
Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif said the surge in terrorist attacks in Pakistan was the outcome of a “proxy war” being waged by India in collusion with the Taliban government in Kabul, warning that Pakistan “will not hesitate” to conduct fresh strikes inside Afghanistan unless someone in Kabul can “underwrite peace”.
Speaking in an interview with France 24 reported on Friday, Asif said “almost all the franchises of terrorism” were present in Pakistan because of what he described as the Kabul government’s lack of seriousness in curbing militancy, adding that “complicity would be a better word”. He said New Delhi and Kabul were “on the same page” when it came to targeting Pakistan, and referred to a recent bomb blast at a mosque in Islamabad that caused multiple casualties.
In a related development reported on Friday, the Associated Press of Pakistan said the suicide attacker who targeted the Malangi Post in Bajaur on 16 February had been identified as an Afghan national. The attacker was named as Khariji Ahmad, alias Qari Abdullah Abu Zar, a resident of Balkh and reportedly a former member of the Taliban’s Special Forces. The assault killed 11 security personnel and two civilians, according to the report.
Why it matters
The statement sharpens a long-running dispute between Islamabad and the Afghan Taliban over cross-border militancy. Security officials cited by the report linked several recent attacks to Afghanistan: the 6 February suicide bombing in Islamabad’s Tarlai area, whose attacker it said had received training in Afghanistan, the October 2025 assault on the Islamabad Judicial Complex and the November 2025 attack on the FC Headquarters in Peshawar. Officials said more than 70 per cent of those involved in terrorist incidents in Pakistan were Afghan nationals. The claims could not be independently verified in the sources reviewed.
Asif also addressed foreign policy questions. On a possible Pakistani role in an international stabilisation mission in Gaza, he said any decision would depend on the mission’s terms of reference, noted Pakistan’s experience in United Nations peacekeeping and called it a “good opportunity” to work towards a two-state solution. Asked about normalising relations with Israel, he said the option was “not even being considered” and could only follow self-determination for Palestinians under a two-state framework.
What is still uncertain
No fresh military operation inside Afghanistan has been announced following the warning. Kabul has not publicly responded to the specific allegations in the report. The identification of the Bajaur bomber rests on the state-run APP account, and the wider claims about Indian and Afghan collusion are allegations attributed to Pakistani officials rather than independently established facts.
Sources & reporting notes
This is a synthesis of published material, not eyewitness reporting. Sources were reviewed on 20 February 2026.
- Pakistan Today — "Pakistan 'won't hesitate' to strike across border amid Delhi-Kabul complicity in 'proxy war': Asif"Published 20 Feb 2026 · The France 24 interview, Asif's remarks on India, Kabul, Gaza and Israel, and the APP report identifying the Bajaur suicide bomber.
